Daleks invade Gordonton

We had Daleks for lunch the other day. They weren’t in the slightest bit metallic and went down very easily.

Preceding the extraterrestrial would-be masters of the universe, we had tagliatelle with lemon, baby artichokes and asparagus, and very nice it was too.

Some young ‘uns were joining us for lunch with their parents, and they both – one munchkin age, the other a little older – loved the ‘garliks’ on Doctor Who.

How could one not make some for them to nibble after pasta. And how hard could it be. Quite easy, it turned out. But you have to be prepared to do some focussed shopping to get all the necessary bits.
Mallowpuffs and sponge cake were easy, but finding the right arms, eye stalks and protruding gun things for the metal menaces was a bit tricky.

I’d thought chocolate peppermint sticks, the sort you nibble after dinner, would be perfect but couldn’t find them. Instead we settled for candy sticks from the sweet kiosk at Chartwell.

Raspberry jam helped cement bits together. To gain extra height I used two layers of sponge with cream in between. Pebbles became the domes on the body but next time I’ll try something else because they were a little large.

Chocolate was melted and smeared on with a knife to give them the right look. This was a bit fiddly, but systems developed that sped the process up – do this before assembling the bodies. And careful where you put those fingers.

The real charm of these guys is that they are rough, we’re not trying for realism here.

We placed our army on a fancy silver tray, in formation, and brought them to the table in a flourish.

The squeals and claps were heart warming – and that was just from the grown ups. The little girls absolutely loved them.

Not one Dalek invader remained to try it on. The Doctor, for once, wasn’t needed.

 

Dalek cakes
1 sponge (home made or bought)
raspberry jam
1 packet mallowpuffs
1 packet pebbles, or similar
long, thin candy or peppermint chocolate sticks
block of chocolate – use as much as necessary
small amount cream

Using the mallowpuff as your template, cut out two body segments for each Dalek from the sponge cake with a knife.

Assemble all the bits you’ll need ready on the table. Snap each candy stick in half.

Melt some chocolate in a double boiler (or you can do this with a bowl over a saucepan) – once melted remove from the heat and slowly add liquid cream, stirring rapidly until well mixed. I made mine on the runny side, to make it easier to apply to the sponge. It’s helpful to have another person assembling the bodies at this stage, while one person paints on the chocolate.

Spread with raspberry jam, a dollop of cream, place the arms between the two sponges, gently push a candy eye stalk into the mallowpuff and finally pop the head on. Then put the pebble domes on to the sides.

Use a spatula to move the daleks into formation. And keep on eye on them, they’re keen on extermination.